


no bigger gift

by LiveLaughLovex



Series: first to fight [18]
Category: The Code (TV 2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Future, Established Relationship, F/M, Found Family, Minor John "Abe" Abraham/Harper Li, Post-Season/Series 01, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-10
Updated: 2020-01-10
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:55:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22195897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiveLaughLovex/pseuds/LiveLaughLovex
Summary: In hindsight, it's hilarious, really, that after all the worry she put into figuring out the perfect way to tell Rhys they're having a child, the way Maya actually ends up telling him is by blurting it out the second they've put their first to bed.
Relationships: John "Abe" Abraham & Maya Dobbins, Maya Dobbins & Harper Li, Maya Dobbins/Original Male Character(s)
Series: first to fight [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1471817
Comments: 6
Kudos: 6





	no bigger gift

**Author's Note:**

> It is the most powerful creation, to have life growing inside you. There is no bigger gift. - Beyonce

It wasn’t until three days after Maya’s pregnancy revelation that Rhys finally returned from Camp Dwyer. The logical part of her brain knew this had to do with the intensive politics involved in the case he’d been assigned to. The irrational part of her, however – the part that’d just learned she was carrying his child and was beyond terrified about it – decided the only explanation for this was that the universe hated her and enjoyed seeing her suffer.

It was probably a good thing he wasn’t there right when she found out, to be honest. Panic set in well before happiness was even allowed to make an appearance. When it did, though, it was all she could feel. Well, that and fear, though she was assured by multiple sources that the second emotion was as natural as the first.

“You thought about how you’re going to tell him?” Harper questioned quietly the morning of Rhys’ return, pouring a bit of soymilk into her mug of coffee and stirring the beverage thoroughly before taking a sip.

“Not particularly,” Maya replied honestly, making a face as she reached for the pot of decaf. “I’ll probably just tell him. He’s going to be ecstatic no matter how I go about it. Plus, I can’t make a huge deal out of it. Maddie doesn’t know yet, either.”

“When are you telling her?” Harper asked curiously.

“Probably not until the end of the first trimester, at the earliest,” Maya said, taking a sip of her coffee and then shaking her head, pouring the remainder down the sink. “People who drink that and say it’s the same as normal coffee are lying to themselves and everyone else. I’m not going along with it.”

“I’ll ask Rami to start stocking hot tea, too,” Harper offered amusedly. “There’s a carton of orange juice in the office fridge, if that sounds better,” she added, nodding to the small office she and Abe shared. “We could send Glen-One-N out for Starbucks, even; I’m sure they have decaffeinated drinks that’re, you know, tolerable.”

“One can hope,” Maya sighed, carrying her now-empty mug into the prosecutors’ office to pour herself some orange juice. Of all her options, it seemed to be the best one.

Abe was on the phone when they walked in. He lifted his free hand in greeting, then paused to listen to the person on the other end of the line for a moment before replying to whatever they’d asked him. After a few seconds, he placed the phone back in its cradle. He exhaled heavily, then glanced up at Harper. “Your mom says hello.”

Harper, who’d been in the middle of taking a drink when he said that, coughed violently for several seconds. After about half a minute had passed, she was able to regain her composure. “Why does my mother have your work number?”

Abe shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t give it to her. If I had to guess, she charmed someone downstairs.” He looked over at Maya. “What’re you doing on this floor? Is there a case I haven’t been briefed on?”

She shook her head. “There’s no decaf downstairs,” she explained, leaning down to open the refrigerator and grab the orange juice. “I think they were trying to save us from ourselves. Harper told me I could come in and grab this; I’m hoping the sugar content will, at the very least, make me feel like less of a zombie.”

“Worth a try, I guess,” Abe agreed.

Harper was still visibly reeling from the revelation that her mother had found a way to be in contact with her boyfriend. “What, exactly, did my mom want?”

“To tell you she’s going on a cruise over Thanksgiving and Christmas,” Abe told her. “With Pierre.”

The last bit of information left Harper rolling her eyes and Maya extremely confused by the conversation as a whole. “I’m sorry – who’s Pierre?”

“He is the man Harper’s mother is seeing,” Abe replied diplomatically. “Who just so happens to only be a year older than our Captain Li, here.”

“Your mom’s dating someone the same age as you?” Maya asked her friend.

“I don’t know if _dating_ is the correct term, but any other would deeply disturb me, so…” Harper shuddered. “Sure. Let’s say they’re dating.”

Maya winced sympathetically, not even wanting to know exactly what the prosecutor meant by that. “Well, if motherhood didn’t already sound terrifying enough, now I learn I run the risk of traumatizing them well into adulthood, as well.”

“Not as long as you don’t date French models the same age as them,” Harper advised helpfully. “Also, I have seen the way you and Donovan look at each other. I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

“Oh,” Maya sighed, smiling self-deprecatingly, “if only that were true.”

-o-

Rhys walked through the door at seven o’clock that evening, still dressed in his fatigues, and was immediately met in the foyer by his five-year-old daughter. She ran across the room, arriving in front of him just in time for him to stoop down and catch her.

“Hi, Daddy,” Maddie greeted as he easily picked her up.

“Hi, baby,” he returned just as cheerfully. “Where’s Mama?”

“In the kitchen,” she informed him. “I think she needs a nap, though,” she whispered – or well, whispered as best as a child could. “She looks tired.”

“Does she?” Rhys questioned lightly, though Maya could hear the undercurrent of concern in his tone as he and Maddie made their way into the kitchen. “Hey, sweetheart,” he murmured, placing Maddie on the floor so he could wrap both arms around Maya’s waist and press a kiss to the back of her head. “You feeling okay?”

“Yeah,” she assured him, mustering up a smile as she leaned her head back against his shoulder. “Work’s just been… something lately, that’s all.”

“Okay,” he replied just as softly, squeezing her gently before releasing her. “If that’s all…”

“That’s all,” she promised, her smile transforming into something much more genuine as she twisted around to wrap her arms around his neck and bring him in for a kiss. “I’m glad you’re home.”

He smiled against her lips. “I’m glad I’m home, too.”

It was something akin to torture, waiting the many minutes it took for dinner to be prepared and then eaten, bedtime stories to be read, and goodnight kisses to be given, but she somehow managed to survive it. By the time the clock struck nine, Maddie was sleeping peacefully in her bed. There were no distractions left to keep her from finally sharing the news with Rhys.

“Wine?” he questioned, moving to grab two glasses from the cupboard.

“I shouldn’t,” she replied, settling onto the sofa and allowing her eyes to drift shut for the first time since she’d gotten out of bed that morning. “How were things in Afghanistan?” she asked several minutes later.

He shrugged, returning to the living room with two mugs of hot chocolate – a staple in the Donovan household even in the summer months. “It was Afghanistan,” he replied vaguely, pressing one of the mugs into her hands and claiming the seat next to her with his own. “Things are never exactly amazing over there. My experiences have always been better than Abraham’s and Li’s, at least.”

She scoffed humorously, lifting her mug to her mouth and taking a shallow sip. “I think just about everyone in the office has had better experiences than theirs.”

“I’d have to agree with that assessment.” Several seconds passed in comfortable silence before he spoke again. “Is everything really okay, or did you just say it was because our kid was standing right there when I asked?”

“I’m pregnant,” she blurted out. And, wow, that hadn’t been the way she’d wanted to tell him. At all. But it was the way it’d come out, so she supposed she’d have to deal with it.

At least he didn’t nearly choke on his beverage the way Abe had; he did, however, nearly spill it. “You are?” he questioned unevenly.

“I found out days ago, but you were in the middle of what a lot of people would still consider a warzone, and I really didn’t want to distract you, so… there’s a chance Abe and Harper found out before you. But!” she added quickly. “I totally would’ve told you first, if you were, you know, here.” She glanced over at him sheepishly. “Are you mad?”

“Mad?” he repeated laughingly, leaning forward to place his mug on the coffee table and then turning to take hers, as well. “Maya, we’re – we’re having a baby.”

“Yeah,” she confirmed, still unsure what he was feeling. “Are you…”

“I’m…” He exhaled heavily, smiling in a way she’d never seen him smile before. “We’re having a _baby_.”

“We’re having a baby,” she murmured back, laughing into his mouth when he immediately pulled her into the most joy-filled kiss she’d ever experienced.

It turned out Harper had been right, she mused later that evening, smiling fondly down at Rhys as he rested his ear against her abdomen, talking animatedly to their unborn child. With Rhys by her side, there was nothing to worry about.

**Author's Note:**

> It was more like a week this time, which has to be better than a month, right? 
> 
> In all seriousness, I'm glad to finally be at the "Maya is pregnant" stage of this series, since this kid has been named since before I published the first story - okay, so the middle name's changed at least twenty times, but I've had the first picked out for a while. Also, it turns out I like writing Abe and Harper's conversations in the background as much as I love writing them exclusively. It's fun to see them through the eyes of someone else. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
